The transfer of French defender Mikael Silvestre to Arsenal, for a
minimal transfer fee thought to be little over £700,000, has so far
been the most surprising switch of the summer.
History had been
made as the two most successful Premier League managers agreed on a
transfer deal for the first time in 12 years.
Sir Alex Ferguson
spoke to The Sun about his decision in allowing Silvestre to leave for
their title rivals. "I could have been selfish and put Mikael in the
reserves... but we are bigger than that. Mikael said he wanted
first-team football. He had lost his position to Patrice Evra, so after
nine years’ service, there was no point holding the boy against his
will."
He continued: "He is a really nice lad and a great
professional, so I let him conduct his own affairs. We knew the price
we wanted and informed the teams who came in for him. He went up to
Sunderland last Friday, and was very positive about that, then
Manchester City came on to the scene."
He concluded: "He was halfway through his medical when Arsenal came in. We have no complaints with the deal at all."
Silvestre
is understood to have a slight muscle problem but is still believed to
make the Arsenal bench for Saturday's early evening fixture with London
rivals, Fulham.